#1 Eat Breakfast – I’m amazed at how many endurance athletes don’t eat breakfast. It doesn’t have to be a big meal right before you run/ride or swim, but a snack before is better than nothing. Then after you finish training, you can nail down that all important breakfast that should include as every meal and snack should (pro/cho/fat).
#2 Increase your protein intake – I know this is one of the big areas where we can’t get nutritionists and doctors to agree on how much is needed, but we do know that protein is very important and I’ve seen it with my athletes and myself when we have a higher protein daily intake we perform better. I recommend getting your protein from lean meats, fish, plants and nuts but avoid all *dairy sources. *(This is a different article in itself).
This will also keep you satiated (fuller) for longer and help you cut out on the unnecessary snacking.
#3 Cycle your calories – Cycling your calories is nothing more than taking in more calories when you train hard and taking in less calories when you have an easy day or you’re off. By doing this you will help your performance during the hard sessions and prevent you from taking in too many during the off or easy days.
Sure, I could definitely add some more to this, but I wanted to keep it simple for now. You can train all you want for the big race, but if you don’t have your nutrition and the timing of it nailed down you will never reach your full potential and it might even cause you to flop come game time.
Till next time,
Coach T
As with everything in the sports performance world, strength coaches, lab rats and performance specialists are constantly dissecting and evaluating what we are delivering to the athlete is the best, most up to date product that will ensure they get quicker, faster, and stronger.
The Endurance side of the house is no different. I can remember back in the day, when I was in junior high track being told by my coach to run – heel to toe. This style would actually be used by Olympians as well as your everyday jogger as they liked to call it back in the day. However, as an endurance junkie I became a student of the sport (which can be really bad in today’s era with the internet and magazines that bleed out a bunch of useless crap) and spent hours on end reading and studying everything I could get my hands on about strength training, swimming, biking and running. (Most of the literature I studied came from the old Eastern block training regime and university books) It was through all of this, that in the late 90′s I came across the POSE method. After studying this method I adopted it for myself, and would eventually start teaching it at my triathlon clinics and workshops across the country. Up until this point, I truly believe that it was the best way for one to run because It actually focused on the mechanics of the run. Over the last few years, I’ve been teaching a modified version of Mark Verstegen’s theory and style (only on the endurance side is anything modified) which I’ve spent tons of money and time studying to perfect.
Ironic enough, several days ago I came across this article written by some lab rats on a study they did concerning highly popular POSE method.
http://www.sportsscientists.com/2007/10/pose-running-reduces-running-economythe.html
In Strength,
TB